Mid-Atlantic Gardening: FEELING BETTER BACK FOR AWHILE AT LEAST, 5 by Gitagal

Gitagal wrote:
Doc---

We both have had the pleasure of seeing this amazing Epi bloom.

You called it a "Red Ibis"------is that the official name of this Epi?
I have always wanted to know....
How big is yours? I am sure, with all your soils concoctions, yours is
a phenomenal size.

I got my original cutting from "kachinagirl" (in CA) in 2005.
She sent two Red Epis and a Ric Rac cactus--they all came at the same time.

The Ric Rac has only bloomed once (2006).
One of the Epis--the Ackermanii--has bloomed well since 2009.
The red Epi (as above)--just started blooming in 20010--blew me away!

As I wrote you in our D-mail--it is now HUGE and very lopsided.
It is becoming unmanageable...
Of course--thinking ahead--I have replacements for all three already
in Hanging Baskets...growing away.

Here are pictures:
1--The ONLY bloom I have had on My Ric-Rac--2006.
2--The red Epi--Ackermanii in bloom
3 & 4 & 5--My old, lopsided other red Epi--with the fantabulous bloom.
You can see the cruddiness of the fronds...ALL the undersides are
perfectly green and flawless...Go figure!

Woe be me!!! By the way--Orchidman (my Guru-to-go-to with Epi
problems) says that all that gray calloused look and the cracked
fronds is perfectly normal for an Epi.

PS---For all the rest of you--pleas excuse me for focusing on this again--
but Doc and I talked about all this just now on our D-mails.
Can't post but ONE picture per Post there---so I am doing them all here...

Gita